NEW DELHI: As Russian President Vladimir Putin prepares to visit India for a much-anticipated meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, old images of the two leaders have resurfaced online.

The photographs, taken in Moscow in 2001, show Modi — then the Chief Minister of Gujarat — accompanying then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee during an official visit. The visuals, captured during a document-signing ceremony, had first gone viral last year when Modi travelled to Russia, and have reappeared on social media ahead of Putin’s India visit. Modi had later recalled how Putin received him warmly despite his state-level position, engaging in candid discussions on states, hobbies, and global affairs. During the 2001 trip, he signed a protocol agreement between Gujarat and Russia’s

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